Clothes washer with improved turbine type pump



2 Sheets-Sheet 1 J. M. PINDER CLOTHES WASHER WITH IMPROVED TURBINE TYPE PUMP o O O O O O z 3 l 3 z 1 8 w Z 8 S K 1 2 u S 6 2 5 2 a w 4 e 3 April 7, 1964 Filed Dec.

J. M. FINDER April 7, 1964 CLOTHES WA SHER WITH IMPROVED TURBINE TYPE PUMP 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Dec. 11, 1961 F'IG.3

INVENTOR. JAMES M. PINDELR Q) W 1,

H \s ATTORNEY United States Patent Ofifice 3,127,839 Patented Apr. 7, 1964 3,127,839 CLUTIES WASHER WITH IMPROVED TURBINE TYPE PUMP James M. Finder, North tlanton, (Ehio, assignor to General Electric Company, a corporation of New York Filed Dec. 11, 1961, Ser. No. 158,288 1 Claim. (Cl. 103-3) This invention relates to laundry apparatus such as clothes washing machines, and more particularly to an improved pump for use in such machines.

Automatic clothes washing machines virtually always include a drain pump which is put into operation in order to effect draining of liquid from the machine after washing and rinsing operations. This pump is generally operated by the same power source, usually an electric motor, which operates the washing system of the machine so that the motor will alternatively provide a washing action in the machine or serve to drain liquid out of the machine. An additional function which has been provided in several commercially available washing machine in recent years is recirculation of the wash liquid during the washing operation, usually for filtering purposes.

Various factors, including the ability to pass small rigid articles carried out by wash water, durability, serviceability, and the like have led to a general trend in the washing machine industry to utilize turbine type pumps for the removal of the liquid from the machine, as opposed to centrifugal type pumps. It is Well known that, with a turbine type pump, direction of flow through the pump can be reversed simply by reversing the rotation of the pump impeller as opposed to centrifugal type pumps wherein flow necessarily is always in a generally radially outward direction through the pump.

It is a primary object of my invention to utilize the foregoing known facts to provide an improved turbine type pump for use in a washing machine wherein a single such pump provides both the water recirculation function during washing and rinsing operations and the draining function during liquid extraction operations.

A further object of my invention is to provide the two different functions from a single turbine type pump by appropriate provision of multiple inlets, outlets and dams so as to cause the desired flow to occur in response to opposite directions of rotation of the impeller of the pump.

Briefly stated, in accordance with one aspect of my irrvention, I provide a turbine pump wherein the housing, with a substantially annular outer wall closed at its ends by suitable end walls, defines therewithin a substantially toroidal pump chamber. In this chamber, there is a rotatable impeller which has an annular series of blades extending outwardly, so that during rotation of the impeller the blades have a turbine effect on liquid in the chamber tending to pump it in one or the other direction, depending upon the direction of rotation of the impeller. First and second ports are provided, extending out from the chamber and positioned circumferentially adjacent to each other. Similarly, third and fourth ports are circumferentially adjacent to each other and extend out from the chamber. A first dam is positioned in the chamber between the first and second ports, and a second dam. is provided between the third and fourth ports.

With this structure, when the impeller is driven in one direction, by suitable reversible drive means connected thereto, flow will occur from the first port to the third port, the two dams being effective to cause the flow to proceed in this desired manner and prevent use of the other part of the pump chamber. Upon reverse direction of impeller rotation, the flow enters through the second port and leaves through the fourth port, with the same dams again providing the same function. In this manner, depending upon the direction of rotation, either the first and third ports may be used in cooperative relation or the second and fourth ports may be used in cooperative relation to provide two entirely different flows of liquid. Of course, where the third and fourth ports are utilized exclusive as outlet ports, as set forth above, it will readily occur that the provision of check Valves at these ports to prevent backflow will provide even further improvement in that the structure inhibits undesired air from being drawn into the pump during pump rotation.

The subject matter which I regard as my invention is particularly pointed out and distinctly claimed in the concluding portion of this specification. The invention itself, however, both as to its organization and method of operation, together with further advantages thereof, may best be understood by reference to the following description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

In the drawings,

FIGURE 1 is a side elevational view of a clothes washin machine including my novel pump, the view being partially broken away and partially in section to illustrate details;

FIGURE 2 is a view along line 2-2 in FIGURE :1, with the cover of the pump removed to illustrate the details of my invention; and

FIGURE 3 is a view along line 33 in FIGURE 2.

Referring now to FIGURE 1, I have shown therein an agitator-type clothes washing machine 1 having a con ventional basket or clothes-receiving receptacle 2 provided over its side and bottom walls with perforations 3 and disposed within an outer imperforate tub or casing i The basket 2 may be provided with a suitable clothes retaining member 5 for preventing clothes from being floated over the top of the basket and with a balance ring 6 to help steady the basket when (as will be explained) it is rotated at high speed.

Tub 4 is rigidly mounted within an appearance cabinet 7 which includes a cover 8 hingedly mounted in the top portion 9 of the cabinet for providing access to an openin 10 of the basket 2. As shown, a gasket 11 may be provided so as to form a seal between the top of tub 4 and portion 9 of the cabinet thereby to prevent escape of moisture and moist air into the cabinet around the tub. The rigid mounting of tub 4 within the cabinet 7 may be effected by any suitable means. As a typical example of one such means, I have provided strap members 12 each of which is secured at one end to an inturned flange .13 of the cabinet and at its other end to the outside of tub 4. At the center of basket 2 there is positioned a vertical axis agitator 14 which includes a center post 15 and a plurality of curved water circulating vanes 16 joined at their lower ends by an outwardly flared skirt 17. Both the clothes basket 2 and the agitator 14 are rotatably mounted. The basket is is mounted on the flange 18 of the rotatable hub 19, and the agitator 14 is mounted on a shaft (not shown) which extends upwardly through the hub 19 and through the center post 15 and is secured to the agitator so as to drive it.

During a typical cycle of operation of the machine 1, water is introduced ino the tub 4 and basket 2, and the agitator 14 is then oscillated back and forth on its axis, that is, in a horizontal plane within the basket to wash the clothes therein. Then after a predetermined period of this washing action, basket 2 is rotated at high speed to extract centrifugally the washing liquid from the clothes and to discharge it to drain. Following this extraction operation, a supply of clean liquid is introduced into the basket for rinsing the clothes and the agitator is again oscillated. Finally the basket is once more rotated at high speedto extract the rinse water.

The basket 2 and agitator 14 are driven from a reversing motor 23 throu h a drive including a clutch 21 mounted on the motor shaft. Clutch 21 may conven- 3 tionally allow the motor to start without a load and then accept the load as it comes up to speed. A suitable belt 22 transmits power to a transniision assembly 23 through a pulley 24. Thus, depending upon the direction of motor rotation, the pulley 24 of transmission 23 is driven in opposite directions.

The transmission 23 is so arranged that it supports and drives both the agitator drive shaft and basket mounting hub 19. When motor is rotated in one direction the transmission causes agitator 14 to oscillate in a substantially horizontal plane within the basket 2. Conversely, when motor 20 is driven in the opposite direction, the transmission rotates the wash basket 2 and agitator 14 together at high speed for centrifugal liquid extraction. While the specific type of driving mechanism used does not form part of the invention, reference is made to Patent 2,844,225, issued to James R. Hubbard et al. on July 22, 1958, and owned by the General Electric Company, assignee of the present invention. That patent discloses in detail the structural characteristics of a transmission assembly suitable for use in the illustrated machine.

In addition to operating the transmission 23 as described, motor Zll also provides a direct drive through a flexible coupling 25 to a pump structure, generally indicated at 26, which forms the essence of my invention. As will be more fully explained herebelow, pump 26 has a housing 27 formed with two liquid inlet ports 28 and 29. Inlet port 28 communicates through a conduit 30 with an opening 31 formed in the side of the tub 4, while inlet port 29 communicates through a conduit 32 with an opening 33 formed in the bottom of tub 4-. Pump 30 also has a pair of outlet ports 34 and 35 formed therein. Outlet port 35 communicates through a conduit 36 with a suitable drain (not shown), and outlet port 34 communicates with a conduit 37 which in turn leads to a nozzle 38. As will be explained, when motor 20 rotates in the direction to cause spinning of basket 2, pump 26 discharges liquid from tub 4 to outlet port 35 and thence to drain, and in the other direction of motor rotation (in which agitation is provided) the pump discharges liquid from tub 4 through outlet port 34 and then through conduit 37 and nozzle 38.

Nozzle 38 is positioned to discharge into a filter pan 39 secured on the top portion 4% of agitator 14 so as to be movable therewith. With this structure then, when the motor is rotating so as to provide agitation, pump 26 draws liquid from tub and discharges it to conduit 37 so that the liquid passes from nozzle 38 into lter pan 39 and then down through a number of small openings 41 provided in the bottom of the filter pan and into the basket 2. In this manner, the filter pan 39, together with its small openings 41 and its upstanding side wall 42, causes lint which is seperated from the clothes during the washing operation to be filtered out of the water and thus prevents it from being redeposited on the clothes. This type of structure is more fully described and claimed in Patent 2,481,797, issued to Russell H. Colley on September 13, 1949, and assigned to General Electric Company, owner of the present invention.

The motor Zll, clutch 21, transmission 23, basket 2 and agitator 14 form a suspended washing and centrifuging system which is supported by the stationary structure of the machine (which includes tub 4) so as to permit isolation of vibrations from the stationary structure. It will be understood that such vibrations occur primarily as a result of high speed spinning of basket 2 with a load of clothes therein as mentioned above. While any suitable suspension structure may be used, one such structure may, for instance, include a bracket member 43 with transmisison 23 mounted on top thereof and motor 20 mounted to the underside thereof. The bracket memher in turn is secured to upwardly extending rigid members 44, and each of the two upwardly extending rigid members 44 is connected to a cable 45 supported from the top of the machine. While only a portion of the suspension system is shown in FIGURE 1 of the drawings, such a vibration isolating system is fully described and claimed in Patent 2,987,190, issued on June 6, 1961, to John Bochan, and assigned to the General Electric Company, assignee of the present invention.

In order to accommodate the movement which occurs between basket 2 and tub 4 without any danger of leakage between them, the stationary tub 4 is joined to the upper part of transmission 23 by a suitable boot member 46. Boot 46 may be of any suitable configuration, many of which are known in the art, to permit relative motion of the parts to which it is joined without leakage therebetween.

Completing now the description of the machine as illustrated in FIGURE 1, hot and cold water may be supplied to the machine through conduits 47 and 48 which are adapted to be connected respectively to sources of hot and cold water (not shown). Conduits 47 and 48 extend into a conventional mixing valve structure 49 having solenoids 5t) and 51 so that energization of solenoid 5t permits passage of hot water through the valve to a hose 52, energization of solenoid 51 permits passage of cold water to the valve, and energization of both solenoids permits mixing of hot and cold water in the valve and passage of warm Water into hose 52. Hose 52 has an outlet 53 positioned to discharge into basket 2 so that when one or both of the solenoids 5t) and 51 is energized water enters into basket 2 and tub 4.

The level to which the water rises in the basket and tub may be controlled by any suitable means. One typical means of doing this is to provide an opening 54 in the side of tub 4 adjacent the bottom thereof, the opening 54 being connected through a conduit 55 and a tube 56 to a conventional pressure sensitive device (not shown) which may be positioned within the backsplasher 57 of the machine 1. With such devices, as the water rises in basket 2 and tub 4 it exerts increasing pressure on the column of air trapped in tube 56; at a predetermined pressure level, the column of air then trips the pressue sensitive mechanism to shut off whichever of solenoids 50 and 51 may be energized and start the agitation which is pr0- vided during the washing and rinsing steps as described above.

The pump 26 has a top or cover member 58 which can best be seen in FIGURE 3. In this connection it will be understood that this cover member is removed in the view of FIGURE 2 to facilitate an understanding of the structural aspects of the invention. The cover member is secured by any suitable means, such as threaded members 59, to a lower member all) so that between them they form a pump housing having an annular side wall 61 and two end walls 62 and 63 defining together a toroidal pump chamber 64. The previously mentioned outlet ports 28, 29, 34 and 3S communicate with the chamber 64 through the annular outer wall 61. Between ports 28 and 29, a dam 65 is positioned so as to substantially block the chamber 64 between ports 28 and 29 leaving, however, enough room for the unimpeded rotation of the blades 66 of an impeller 67 which is positioned so as to have its blades 66 extending substantially radially outwardly into the pump chamber as shown. Blades 66 may, as shown, be generally turbine shaped, extending in planes at substantially right angles to the plane of rotation. Also, in the usual manner, the impeller may include a web or joining member 68 formed substantially in the general plane of rotation of the impeller, as best seen in FIGURE 3.

The positioning of the impeller 67 may be eifected in. any desired manner. For instance, the impeller may be mounted on a shaft 69 which passes through a seal 70 and then extends downwardly into engagement with the flexible coupling 25 mentioned in connection with FIG-- URE 1. The clearances of the impeller, as it rotates within. the space provided for it, are relatively narrow so that.

there Will be little leakage from the chamber 64 around the impeller and this small leakage will be stopped by the seal 70.

Positioned between the two ports 34 and 35 is a second dam 71. Similarly to the relationship of dam 65 to ports 28 and 29, dam 71 substantially blocks the chamber 64 between outlet ports 34 and 35, leaving room for the unimpeded rotation of the blades 66 of impeller 67.

During operation of the machine, the pump impeller 67, as viewed in FIGURE 2, is turned in a counterclockwise direction by motor 20 during agitation operations and in a clockwise direction during centrifuging operations. As a result of the counterclockwise rotation during agitation, liquid is drawn in through port 28 and then pumped around to port 34 where, because of dam 71, the liquid is diverted into the outlet port 34.

While a small amount of liquid may be caused to move by the impeller 67 past the dam 71, this liquid will tend either to pass by dam 65 back into the proper fiow path, or else to pass out through port 29 and, thus, will have virtually no efiect on the operation of the structure. Thus, as desired, during agitation operations a substantial quan tity of liquid is recirculated from inlet port 28 to outlet port 34.

As explained above, when it is desired to spin the water out at the end of a wash operation, the direction of rotation of motor 28 is reversed. This in turn reverses the direction of rotation of impeller 67 so that it then starts to rotate in a clockwise direction. As a result, water is drawn in from port 29 and discharged through port 35, again because of the cooperative action of the dams 65 and 71.

Again, there may be a minor quantity of water going past dam 71 as a result of the action of impeller 67. However, the only effect of this will be that this small quantity of Water will either further be recirculated past clam 65 and thus re-enter the desired stream, or else it will be pumped out through port 28. As can readily be seen, this latter result will merely have the effect of causing it to re enter the tub. Because this action is so minor compared to the substantial quantity of liquid passing from port 29 to port 35, the tub 4 is nonetheless emptied as desired. Thus, by reversing the direction of rotation of impeller 67, and by using only part of the total circumferential length of the chamber 63 for the pumping action from each inlet to each outlet, both recirculation and draining may be obtained with the same pumping chamber and the same single impeller. Preferably, as shown, the distance through chamber 64 from inlet 29 to outlet 35 is greater than the distance from inlet 28 to outlet 34. Because of the well known characteristics of turbine pumps, this causes greater pressure and flow of liquid travelling the longer path, i.e., the drain flow is caused to be greater than the recirculation flow.

Of course, it will readily be recognized that under some circumstances when, for instance, the impeller is rotating in a counterclockwise direction so as to pass liquid in the recirculation stream, there will be a tendency for the machine to pump air in through port 35. This pumping tendency may readily be overcome by provision of suitable simple check valves such as, for instance, the rubber check valves 72 and 73 which are respectively shown as being positioned in ports 34 and 35, and which permit flow only out from chamber 64 and not into the chamber.

t will be seen from the foregoing that my invention provides the highly desirable feature of a turbine type pump having a single impeller and provided with ports and dams properly located so that two entirely different flow streams are provided during the alternative washing and spinning operations.

While in accordance with the patent statutes I have described what at present is considered to be the preferred embodiment of my invention, it will be obvious to those skilled in the art that various changes and modifications may be made therein without departing from the invention, and it is therefore aimed in the appended claim to cover all such changes and modifications which fall within the true spirit and scope of my invention.

What I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States is:

A turbine pump comprising a housing having a substantially annular outer wall and end walls closing the ends of said outer wall, said housing defining therewithin a substantially toroidal pump chamber, a rotatable impeller having an annular series of blades extending outwardly into said chamber, circumferentially adjacent first and second ports and circumferentially adjacent third and fourth ports, each said port being formed extending through one of said walls from said chamber, said first and second ports being inlet ports and said third and fourth ports being outlet ports respectively associated with said first and second inlet ports, check valves respectively positioned in each of said third and fourth ports so as to prevent flow through said third and fourth ports into said chamber, a first dam positioned in said chamber between said first and second ports, a second darn positioned in said chamber between said third and fourth ports, and reversible drive means connected to said impeller for rotating said impeller in opposite directions.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,717,814 Strong et a1 June 18, 1929 1,861,837 Burks June 7, 1932 1,979,621 Hollander Nov. 6, 1934 2,330,565 Eckart Sept. 28, 1943 2,513,446 Brown July 4, 1950 2,778,316 Haight et al. Jan. 22, 1957 2,832,199 Adams et a1 Apr. 29, 1958 2,836,123 Banerian May 27, 1958 2,838,002 Cohen June 10, 1958 2,864,312 Shelton et al Dec. 16, 1958 2,883,843 Bochan Apr. 28, 1959 2,916,997 Terrie Dec. 15, 1959 2,928,243 Albright Mar. 15, 1960 2,961,967 Meyer et a1 Nov. 29, 1960 2,969,021 Menon Jan. 24, 1961 FOREIGN PATENTS 903,607 France Jan. 22, 1945 

